犹 yóu similar to
similar to; just like; as
How to remember 犹: 犭 dog + 尤 especially = similar to. The dog copies the cat, especially the way it washes, and the girl, searching for words, says he is similar to a cat.
Component breakdown
犹 = 犭 dog + 尤 especially
- 犭 dog
- 尤 especially
The dog copies the cat, especially the way it washes, and the girl, searching for words, says he is similar to a cat.
How it is used
- A literary, bound character meaning "just like/similar to," surviving mainly in a handful of fixed words rather than free combination.
- 犹豫 yóuyù (to hesitate) is by far the most common word built from it, used constantly in everyday speech: 别犹豫了 (Bié yóuyù le) - "Stop hesitating."
- 犹如 yóurú (to be just like, similar to) is a formal, written simile marker found in essays and literary description, not casual conversation; 记忆犹新 jìyì-yóuxīn ("the memory is still fresh") is a common idiom built on the same root.